Sunday, September 8, 2013

2003 - SINBAD: LEGEND OF THE SEVEN SEAS, by the numbers

Another film about Sinbad, another larger than life adventure. Sinbad fights a big animated monster. Sinbad falls in love with his best friend's girl, Sinbad's dog is a real cut up, etc.

As is the way with animated features these days, the cast is full of Hollywood stars. Brad Pitt is Sinbad, Michelle Pfeiffer is the love interest and Catherine Zeta Jones is the mythical creature Marina who is clearly a stand in for The Little Mermaid's sea witch Ursula. These actors add nothing to this cartoon and I doubt anyone went to see this film because Brad Pitt was the voice of Sinbad.

Sinbad is a middle eastern character but you would never know it from the white bread animated characters and voices in fact it is impossible to even tell that is a story with middle eastern influences.

The biggest problem with this film is that it is uninteresting. The story is another of these hero's journey tales where at the end of the story he is a better human being for what he has gone through. sort of an updated version of Pinocchio. On the positive side the film is pretty to look at. Nice color and visuals that are easy on the eyes and no songs.